Synthetic to conventional to synthetic

[MP5stephen]

Alright. In my 03 Mazda Protege5, synthetic has always been used up until the last oil change, where conventional oil was used(due to lack of funds for more expensive oil). I'm about to hit the 3000mile mark(since last change) with conventional(I know it's bad to go over with conventional). I am able to now afford synthetic.

Will the transition from synthetic to conventional, back to synthetic be harmful to the engine? I know that IF I had only used conventional the entire life of the car, I SHOULDN'T switch to synthetic. Should I not even bother with synthetic anymore since it's had conventional for 3,000m? I'd rather run synthetic since I'll be able to get more than triple the miles on conventional. BTW, My car only has around 58,350 miles total.

 

[fishdonotbounce]

You don't need to do an oil change every 3,000 miles unless you live in extreme conditions or you race your car. 4,500 is perfectly fine. Maybe even 6,000. Check your user manual and it will tell you the exact interval. Unless you plan on going turbo or racing the s*** out of your car, stick with conventional. Buy good quality conventional oil and a quality oil filter and you won't have any issues.

 

[MP5stephen]

Alright. Thanks. Yeah, I was reading, and I read the manual after posting this. I'll go to around 5k-6k, since I live in FL.

 

[fishdonotbounce]

Yea you'll be just fine doing that. Good luck.